Configure DHCP Server in Windows Server 2016 Step By Step

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is as service that provides TCP/IP settings, such as IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, and DNS server to the clients, automatically. In a large enterprise network, it is difficult to manage IP addresses manually. Hence, DHCP can be a useful feature to manage the IP addresses in a large enterprise network.

In this post, we will explain how to install the DHCP server role and how to configure DHCP server in Windows Server 2016. For this, we will use a system named as DC1 that is configured with 10.0.0100/8 IP address and hosts the AD DS role service for the mcsalab.local domain. If you have not configured the Domain Controller yet, visit the following link for the step by step guide.

The configuration of DHCP server in Windows Server 2016 includes the following two major tasks:

Install the DHCP Server Role in Windows Server 2016

Configure DHCP in Windows Server 2016

Install DHCP Server Role in Windows Server 2016

Installing roles and features in Windows Server 2016 is exactly same as we use for the previous version of Windows Servers. To install the DHCP Server role on your server machine, open the Server Manager console and click the Add roles and features link. Click Next until the Select server roles page is displayed.

The Select server roles page returns with the DHCP Server role check box selected, as shown in the following figure, click Next.

Complete the installation process.

Configure DHCP Server in Windows Server 2016

Now you have installed the DHCP server role on your server, the next task is to configure DHCP scope and other options. To do so, perform the following steps:

On the Server Manager console, click Tools, and then click DHCP.

On the DHCP console, expand your server name mcsalab.local.

Select and right-click your server name and then select Authorize to authorize your DHCP server.

Refresh the DHCP console to enforce the changes. Notice that the icons next to IPv4 and IPv6 nodes change from red to green as shown in the following figure.

Now, create a new DHCP scope to specify the IP address ranges for your DHCP server. To do so, select and right-click IPv4 and then select New Scope.

On the welcome page of the New Scope Wizard, click Next.

On the Scope Name page, specify a DHCP scope name as shown in the following figure, and then click Next.

On the IP Address Range page, specify the start and end IP addresses from which the DHCP server will allocate the IP addresses to the clients. For example, we will use the following IP address range, as shown in the following figure. Click Next.

Start IP address: 10.0.0.225

End IP address: 10.0.0.250

Length: 8

Subnet mask: 255.0.0.0

On the Add Exclusions and Delay page, exclude the IP addresses that you want to be not distributed by the DHCP server. For example, we will exclude the following IP address range, as shown in the following figure.

Start IP address: 10.0.0.225

End IP address: 10.0.0.230

Click Add, and then click Next. On the Lease Duration page, review the default lease duration limit, and then click Next.

On the Configure DHCP Options page, make sure that the Yes, I want to configure these option now radio button is selected and then click Next.

On the Router (Default Gateway) page, in the IP address text box, type the address of your router. In this demonstration, we will use 10.0.0.1 as a default gateway for the DHCP clients. If you don’t want to specify the router address, leave the IP address box blank and proceed to the next page.

Click Add, and then click Next. On the Domain Name and DNS Servers page, make sure that your DNS server IP address is already populated. In this case, 10.0.0.100 as shown in the following figure, click Next.

On the WINS Servers page, we are not going to use WINS server, hence, leave it as is and click Next.

On the Activate Scope page, make sure that the Yes, I want to activate this scope now radio button is selected, as shown in the following figure. Click Next and complete the wizard.

Refresh the DHCP console. Make sure that the IPv4 node is marked with the green color as shown in the following figure.

Now, your DHCP server is configured and ready to allocate TCP/IP settings to the DHCP clients. In order to test and verify your DHCP server configuration, visit the following nice article.